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Resident tells council he has multiple FOIA lawsuits, says town records responses are inadequate
Summary
During public comment, a resident alleged the town’s FOIA officer is failing to provide requested records in the required format and said he has roughly six lawsuits against the town; council members offered to meet after the meeting to help and noted prior responsiveness under a former manager.
A resident, identified in the meeting sign-up as Larry River of 301 West 4th Street, told the Mineral Town Council he has repeatedly filed Freedom of Information Act requests and said the town’s FOIA officer was not providing records in the format he requested.
River said he has not been receiving the detailed responses he expects and that prior requests under the former town manager were handled differently. “Your FOIA officer is failing their job. I’m not getting the information that I’m supposed to be getting,” he said, and told council he currently has “roughly 6 lawsuits against this town” related to records access.
Council members responded that staff would meet with River after the meeting to review his requests and try to resolve the access issues. A councilor noted state guidance and that individual members should not represent the entire council in external complaints without authorization; town counsel’s guidance about recording votes and formal representation was referenced during subsequent business.
Council did not take formal action on the FOIA allegation during the meeting; staff offered to follow up and the chair invited the resident to meet after adjournment.
